ANGELA GANTKOWSKI
A
NGEL A GANTKOWSKI DESCRIBES HER 2018 SEA-
son as somewhat of a “transition year.” The 20-year-old college
student was making the switch from racing mainly at her local
Farmington Dragway and regional IHRA sportsman events
to following the eight-race PDRA series on a limited basis.
“IHRA changed what they were going to do to the Pro Ams,” Gantkowski
says, “so we decided to switch it up and try the PDRA to see what would
happen since they had Elite and Regular Top Dragster. We went to Maryland
(for the PDRA North-South Shootout) just to see what would happen. We
didn’t really have any expectations. We thought we’d win a round, maybe.”
Gantkowski ended up winning two rounds in Elite Top Dragster, defeat-
ing 2017 world champion Matt Cooke and fellow rising star EmiLee Novak
before a broken vacuum pump ended her day in the semifinals. “I think that
was a good finish since we didn’t expect to go that far,” Gantkowksi says.
Her second appearance on the PDRA tour was a big one, as Gantkowski
qualified No. 1 in the Top Dragster 32 field and went through four rounds
to win her first PDRA “660 Man” trophy.
“I just remember thinking, ‘It’s all or nothing,’” Gantkowski says of her
mindset going into the final round. “I think I was .023, .020 and a high
teen, so I figured I might as well just try to be perfect. Why not? I took some
out of the box for the final and I was .002, which was good because my car
slowed up. I put it all on the line for that final. That was a big win for me.”
Gantkowski picked up a second consecutive event win at the PDRA Fall
Nationals at Darlington Dragway, sending her to the upper echelon of the
Top Dragster 32 championship points standings leading into the World
Finals at Virginia Motorsports Park.
Gantkowski admits she was overthinking the points situation when
she went red in the second round at the World Finals, but she sees it as a
learning experience for this season. “This year I’m not even going to worry
about where I am in the points or anything like that,” she says. “I realized
that’s when I’ll overthink things.”
In addition to a more experienced mindset, Gantkowski also enters the
season with a faster car. Owned and maintained by her father, Shawn, the
Race Tech-built dragster has a beefed-up PAR Racing Engines bullet that
should put Gantkowski into the 4.20s, maintaining the position as the
quickest all-motor car in PDRA Top Dragster.
Gantkowski plans to run the full 2019 PDRA schedule in her pursuit
for the PDRA world championship. Beyond that, she has bold ambitions
for her racing career. She has a year and a half left at Appalachian State
University as a marketing major, a field of study that will no doubt pay
dividends when she attempts to take her career to the next level.
“After (Top Dragster) I would love to be in Top Alcohol or Top Fuel,”
Gantkowski says. “I know it’s like a one-in-a-million chance – that’s why
I’m going to school – but I would jump at the chance to run one of those
classes if a sponsor wanted to get involved.
“Not only would I love to travel, but I love how Courtney Force inspired
so many young women, including myself, to think it’s not just a male sport,”
she continues. “Even in the Jr. Dragster when I’ve had younger girls come
up to me to sign their shirt, I was like, ‘Wow, they think that I’m like an
idol because I’m a girl racing.’ As I grew up, I realized that’s something I
want to do more. I want to show younger girls that it is possible and you
can dominate in the sport, it’s not just a guy thing.” - NATE VAN WAGNEN
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Dr ag Illustr ated
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D r a g Il l u s t r a t e d . c o m
UNEXPECTED SUCCESS